Reproductive health: need, problems and strategies
Reproductive health means total well-being in all aspects of reproduction: physical, emotional, behavioural and social. India's RCH programmes build awareness, services and research for it.
What is reproductive health?
The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines reproductive health as total well-being in all aspects of reproduction: physical, emotional, behavioural and social. So it is more than just the absence of disease. A reproductively healthy society has people with physically and functionally normal reproductive organs. They also have normal emotional and behavioural interactions in all sex-related matters.
Why it is needed: problems the programmes tackle
- Myths and misconceptions about sex-related matters among young people.
- Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV and AIDS.
- Uncontrolled population growth.
- Sex abuse and sex-related crimes.
- Female foeticide through misuse of sex-determination tests.
- High maternal and infant mortality where medical care is poor.
Strategies of the RCH programmes
| Strategy | What it involves |
|---|---|
| Creating awareness | Audio-visual and print media; parents, close relatives, teachers and friends give correct information |
| Sex education in schools | Correct information about reproductive organs, adolescence, safe and hygienic sexual practices, STIs and AIDS, to remove myths |
| Educating couples | Birth control options, care of pregnant mothers, post-natal care of mother and child, breastfeeding, and equal opportunities for boys and girls |
| Medical support | Strong infrastructure, trained professionals and materials for problems such as pregnancy, delivery, STIs, abortion, contraception, menstrual problems and infertility |
| Laws and campaigns | A statutory ban on amniocentesis for sex determination, to check female foeticide; massive child immunisation |
| Research | New methods, for example the oral contraceptive Saheli, developed at the Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI), Lucknow |
Indicators of improved reproductive health
- Better awareness of sex-related matters.
- More medically assisted deliveries and better post-natal care, which lower maternal and infant mortality rates.
- More couples with small families.
- Better detection and cure of STIs.
- More medical facilities for all sex-related problems.
School health talks, Anganwadi check-ups for pregnant mothers and child immunisation drives are the RCH ideas at work in Indian villages and towns.
2 marks: “What is meant by reproductive health, according to WHO?” Total well-being in all aspects of reproduction: physical, emotional, behavioural and social. It is more than the absence of disease.
3 marks: “List any three indicators of improved reproductive health in a society.” Better awareness of sex-related matters; more medically assisted deliveries and better post-natal care, lowering MMR and IMR; more small families; better detection and cure of STIs; more medical facilities. Any three.
1 marks: “Expand RCH.” Reproductive and Child Health Care.
WHO's reproductive health is PEBS: Physical, Emotional, Behavioural, Social.